Zebra
by Kazima Kuwabara
Summary: Ever wonder why Beastboy can't have meat? The group must suffer with the consequences after Beastboy has a taste of meat.


i own nothing...but I want a Beastboy plushie sooooooo bad.....  
  
Robin, Raven, Starfire, and Cyborg observed their friend Beastboy as he fought. He was normal, until last week. But today he woke up and nothing was the same.  
  
Beastboy was gone, and was replaced with a hateful creature.  
  
The Beastboy we knew had now died his hair black, and his green skin was gray. His innocent eyes were clouded by hate, and anger, his careless smile a thing of the past. He shortened his name.  
  
He was now Beast.  
  
"If only last week hadn't happened...if only..." Robin murmured, sliding against the wall, sitting on the floor. The others followed suite, and watched as "Beast" worked out.   
  
Raven took in this new darker being, this hateful person. She had wished Beastboy would act serious, and grow up. That was all she wanted. She didn't want this monster to be here.   
  
He was too much like her father...  
  
Cyborg hadn't touched the video games. He and Beastboy played those. But "Beast" he spat on them, and even destroyed the 2nd controller. Cyborg closed his eyes, and shook his head.  
  
"Man...BB...where did you go?"  
  
Starfire cried almost 24/7. She wanted the old Beastboy. The Beastboy she was friends with not this....not this.  
  
"How could he have turned this way?" Starfire whispered, her voice overflowing with emotion.   
  
"He always...said..." Cyborg said slowly, glancing lazily at his friend. "That he couldn't eat meat...."  
  
"These are the side effects." Raven finished, her emotionless face, unable to hide the pain in her voice.  
  
"It's still hard to believe...." Robin whispered.  
  
But it had happened....it had happened.  
  
~One Week ago~  
  
"LET US GO!" Robin growled at Slade, who leered down at them. The small group was all in his own specially designed chains. Slade looked at him, his eye burning holes in all of them. "My my...sad...I can't catch you when your off guard...but when your engaged in another fight...I can...."  
  
Slade chuckled and shook his head, "How pathetic."  
  
"Yeah? Well we're not some cheesy rip off of 'The Phantom Of the Opera'! " Beastboy stuck out his tongue. The chains channeled a special energy that wouldn't allow him to change into an animal. So he had no means of escape.  
  
Slade glanced at him, and gave another laugh, but this was sounded more amused than anything. He bent down talking his face. "My...I almost forgot...I have a present for you Beastboy."  
  
He waked off, further into his lair, and his voice called, "I've been researching your planet. Your race does eat meat...but that's why you came here...so you wouldn't be like them."  
  
Beastboy had gone pale, and his friends looked at him with concern. Starfire couldn't, her eyes were covered, so she couldn't shoot her lasers, and Raven's mouth was covered as well.   
  
Slade had done a pretty good job designing his trap.  
  
"When you become a vegetarian on your planet, you must leave. By not consuming meat, you stay unique, and don't become what they become."  
  
Slade came back, a bloody Zebra head in his arms.   
  
"When your kind eat meat...you become something...something worse than even myself. So..." Slade placed The head down, and wiped a bloody hand on Beastboy's frightened face. "I've decided to recruit you."  
  
Beastboy looked down at the Zebra head, and then at his friends, and finally Slade.   
  
"NO!"  
  
Beastboy thrashed in his chains, injuring himself, and his friends.   
  
"BB?" Cyborg looked at him surprised by his reaction. "What is happening? Why is their screaming?!" Starfire whimpered, the loss of one of her senses scaring her.   
  
"Beastboy! It's okay! We'll get out of this!" Robin grunted struggling. Slade ignored him, his eyes on the thrashing Beastboy. "Once you are on my side, maybe we can persuade Robin here to join up...but why stop there? Why not the whole crew?"  
  
Slade laughed, and Beastboy cried out as Slade ripped a piece of flesh from the decaying Zebra head. "NO! YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT YOUR DOING! IT WON'T WORK THE WAY YOU'LL THINK IT'LL WORK! NO SLADE PLEASE DON'T!"   
  
Alarm filled the other Titan's heads when they heard/saw Beastboy crying. He closed his mouth shaking his head.  
  
Beastboy cried out, as Slade held him down, "NO! I DON'T WANT TO BE THAT! DON'T CHANGE ME! I DON'T WANT TO CHANGE! I WANT TO STAY THE SAME!" Beastboy shook his head crying, tears soaking his skin, and dripping on the floor.  
  
"Poor little boy...I actually feel bad..." Slade snorted, and the meat was shoved into Beastboy's mouth.  
  
Beastboy's eyes went wide, as he choked and gagged, the Zebra's flesh going into his stomach. After maybe a minute, his body stopped shaking, and his eyes went wide.   
  
He growled, and ripped off the chains, setting the others free, and he down for the Zebra head.  
  
The group starred in horror as their friend tore into the meat, growling loudly. Blood splashed his face, and he turned to them. His eyes were dark, and narrowed, not the eyes they were used to seeing.   
  
Slade clapped his hands, "So my research was correct."  
  
Beastboy turned to him, the Zebra's head forgotten, and he headed for him, moving slowly. Slade took a step back, looking alarmed but it was too late. Beastboy changed into a panther, and began to rip Slade apart.  
  
The Titan's turned away, unable to do anything...  
  
Unable to get the sight of the blood smeared on Beastboy's face out of their heads...  
  
Unable to close their ears to Slade's screams...  
  
And unable to stop the tears.  
  
When there was silence the group looked back at Beastboy, and saw he was once again himself, and stood, his back facing them. His skin was a pale gray, and his height had shot up. He was now Cyborg's height. His arms and legs became well tones, and his hands were gripped.  
  
He turned around, and they no longer saw the child of their group. The one who reminded them that they were still kids. The one who brought everyone's spirits up. That teen was gone.  
  
His eyes were no longer wide with innocence, but were mere slits decorated with malice. The were a dark black, and his mouth was still covered with blood. The monster that used to be Beastboy marched towards them.   
  
"I am tied to you...You are my clan...that I remember...I will not betray my clan." He growled, his voice was even different. "When I was...." The Beast growled, His angry eyes looked at them. "I know that here, you were my family, my pack...so I will not kill you...and I will obey what the leader says...." The eye glared at Robin. "You will not be killed by me...."  
  
"Beastboy-"  
  
He whipped around grabbing Robin, "I'm Beast...I am no boy."  
  
He dropped him and walked off.  
  
There Beastboy died. He was gone.  
  
~present~  
  
Though their past week reminded them of all that went wrong, they held onto hope. For Beast was not eating meat, maybe that meant there was a hope.  
  
"Human...towel."  
  
Robin snapped out of his thoughts, and looked up at Beast. He rose and handed Beastboy a towel. "Here." Beast wiped his face, the others watching sorrowfully. "I give you my gratitude."  
  
Beast walked off, but paused.  
  
"...Does..." The others looked at him, waiting for him to speak. "Does anyone want to...want to have a Breakfast Blowout? Me and Cy will cook..."  
  
He glanced back at them, and they saw his eyes were no longer as dark as they had first seen. They were dark but now they could recognize the old green they were used to seeing in Beastboy's eyes.  
  
The group smiled. "Yeah...sounds great."  
  
Hope hadn't died yet, and neither had Beastboy. 


End file.
